San Bernardino County is proposing a mandatory spay and neuter ordinance for pit bulls and pit bull mixes in all unincorporated areas.

The ordinance goes before the Board of Supervisors on June 22 for a first reading. It would require all owners of pit bull and pit bull mixes over the age of four months to have their dogs spayed or neutered within 30 days of implementation of the ordinance, or face a fine of up to $100.

In addition, all such dogs used for breeding and housed in a licensed dog kennel will be required to be licensed.

More than a third of the dogs housed at the county animal shelter in Devore are pit bulls or pit bull mixes, and 77 percent of them are euthanized on a regular basis, said Brian Cronin, director of the county Animal Care and Control.

The primary aim of the ordinance is to reduce the overpopulation of pit bulls in the county and educate the public on responsible pet ownership, Cronin said.

“If we can curtail the number of pit bulls being born, we feel we’re not only doing a service to the general public, but to the breed of dog itself,” Cronin said. “It’s simply not fair that all of these animals have to be euthanized because individuals have not fulfilled their commitment to them.”

Up and down the state, pit bulls are among the top three breeds clogging animal shelters. Owners realize they are too high maintenance after buying them and ultimately discard them, Cronin said.

The proposal comes amid recent fatal and nonfatal pit bull attacks throughout the county, including in San Bernardino and Apple Valley.

For more information or to access county Animal Care and Control services, call 800-472-5609, or visit the division’s website at www.sbcounty.gov/acc.

Joe Nelson is an award-winning investigative reporter who has worked for The Sun since November 1999. He started as a crime reporter and went on to cover a variety of beats including courts and the cities of Colton, Highland and Grand Terrace. He has covered San Bernardino County since 2009. Nelson is a graduate of California State University Fullerton. In 2014, he completed a fellowship at Loyola Law School's Journalist Law School program.

Join the Conversation

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@scng.com.